The immense impact force of the blast was staggering. It carried Charlotte Linlin's charred, smoking, and colossal body backward like a giant rock hurled by a trebuchet!+1
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
Her massive frame smashed through the already shattered throne, pierced the thick inner walls of the castle, and collapsed one support pillar after another. Her backward trajectory remained unchecked as she tore a massive hole through the outer wall on the far side of the building. She plummeted from the towering Cake Castle, accompanied by a rain of rubble and dust, crashing heavily onto the street below and creating a bottomless giant crater!+4
Nearly a third of the entire Cake Castle structure, with the banquet hall at its center, completely collapsed and disintegrated in the aftermath of that single blow. Fragments of candy, biscuits, and cake rained down like a storm, revealing the twisted steel structure hidden within the candy-coated architecture.+4
A Shaken Family
Then came the silence—a deathly, absolute silence. Apart from the occasional crackle of falling debris and the faint, painful groans echoing from the deep crater where Charlotte Linlin had fallen, there was no other sound in the world.+3
All surviving members of the Charlotte Family stood frozen like statues. Whether they were powerful Sweet Commanders like Katakuri and Smoothie, high-ranking cadres like Perospero and Amande, or ordinary children, their faces were devoid of all color. They were left with nothing but extreme bewilderment, fear, and the despair of seeing their faith shattered.+4
Mama... the woman who was as powerful and invincible as a god in our hearts... was actually defeated? +3
And she wasn't just defeated; she was crushed. It had been so swift, so thorough, and she had been left without any power to fight back. Just two moves—it wasn't even a duel; it was a unilateral execution.+3
Under Katakuri's scarf, cold sweat soaked his collar. The fragments of the future he had foreseen with his Observation Haki were now completely filled with a destructive white light. Smoothie gripped her spiral sword so hard her knuckles turned white, her body trembling as she looked at the black-haired figure standing in the center of the ruins. The golden Ki aura around him was slowly receding, and her eyes were filled with a complex mix of emotions she had never felt before.+4
Even Whitebeard retracted his Tremor Barrier, a hint of solemnity in his eyes as he watched the scene unfold. It seemed that every time Takuro displayed his power, there was simply no limit to it. Nico Robin took a deep breath of the air—which now smelled of burnt sugar and smoke—trying to calm her racing heart. Gion, a veteran Marine, was completely speechless; she knew exactly how terrifying a Yonko like Big Mom was, and this scene completely overturned her understanding of the limits of mortal power.+4
The New Order
Takuro slowly descended from mid-air, his boots landing on the broken biscuit floor with a quiet "crunch". The golden Ki around him subsided entirely, and he returned to his usual lazy posture, hands tucked casually into his pockets. He looked as if the world-destroying blow he had just delivered had nothing to do with him at all.+3
He strolled to the edge of the gaping hole in the castle wall and looked down at the smoking crater in the street below.+3
"Hey, old hag," he called out. His voice wasn't loud, yet it reached the deep crater and the ears of every distraught Charlotte Family member with perfect clarity. "Are you still alive down there?" +4
From the depths of the pit came a violent, hacking cough followed by painful gasps. A moment later, Charlotte Linlin's weak and terrified voice drifted up intermittently: "Al... alive..." +3
Takuro nodded, looking satisfied.+3
"Then, as per our agreement," he said, turning back toward the room. His crimson pupils swept over the Charlotte Family members, who huddled together like startled birds. His gaze finally landed on Katakuri and Smoothie, the only ones who had managed to maintain even a shred of composure.+3
"Totto Land, and all the power of your Charlotte Family, belongs to me from now on," he declared. His tone was flat, yet it carried the weight of an undeniable final verdict. "Do you have any objections?" +3
Katakuri's body trembled. He took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the fear and humiliation burning in his chest. He was the first to kneel on one knee, lowering the head that he never easily bowed to anyone.+4
"No... no objections... Lord Takuro," he managed to say.+4
Seeing even Katakuri kneel, Smoothie, Perospero, and the others followed suit. All the remaining members of the family fell like toppled dominoes, driven by endless fear and a small hint of relief at having survived the encounter.+4
"Greetings... Lord Takuro!" +3
The chorus of voices was uneven and shaky, but there was no longer any hint of resistance left in them. Takuro looked at the kneeling pirates with an expression that suggested this outcome was only natural.+3
"Very good," he replied.+3
The Miracle Bean
From within the deep crater, Charlotte Linlin's groans remained faint and full of pain. Her proud "Iron Balloon" body had been shattered by the destructive power of the energy blast; many of her bones were unnaturally twisted, and her life force was fading like a candle in a storm.+3
Takuro stood at the edge of the pit, his crimson eyes scanning the scene indifferently. He casually reached into his pocket and pulled out a small, vibrant green bean—a Senzu Bean.+3
With a flick of his finger, the Senzu Bean shot accurately into the crater, landing right in the hand of Katakuri, who was kneeling nearby.+3
"Give it to her to eat," Takuro commanded.+3
Katakuri looked down at the unremarkable bean in his palm. It didn't emit any energy or Ki fluctuations. A hint of hesitation flashed in his eyes—could this tiny thing really save his mother, who was clearly on the verge of death?+4
But Takuro's undeniable tone and the memory of the terrifying power he had just displayed meant Katakuri didn't dare to disobey. He carefully pried open Charlotte Linlin's tightly clenched jaw and slipped the Senzu Bean inside.+3
The bean melted instantly upon entering her mouth.+3
In the next moment, a miracle occurred that left every member of the Charlotte Family utterly dumbfounded!+3
The shocking, charred wounds on Charlotte Linlin's body began to wriggle and heal at a speed visible to the naked eye. New, tender skin rapidly covered the carbonized areas. Her broken and misaligned bones made faint, dense "crackling" sounds as they automatically reconnected and restored themselves. Her face, which had been as pale as paper and twisted in agony, rapidly regained a healthy flush. Her breath, which had been almost imperceptible, suddenly became strong and vigorous, as if infused with a vast torrent of life!+3
In less than three seconds, all of Charlotte Linlin's fatal injuries—and even some of her old, chronic ailments—were completely healed! Aside from her ruined clothes and the bloodstains on her skin, she looked as if she had just taken a short nap after a hearty meal!+3
"This... how is this possible?!" someone whispered.+3
"Mama's injuries... are they all gone?!" +3
"That bean... is it some kind of divine medicine?!" +3
The Charlotte children were stunned once again. Beyond their initial fear, their gazes toward Takuro now held an indescribable sense of awe. A method of instantly healing near-fatal injuries was simply unheard of in the world of the Grand Line.
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